Daily Bulletin: On last day of campaigning, Modi to be in MP, Rahul in Himachal; SIT to probe Vidyasagar statue vandalism; day's top stories

On last day of campaigning ahead of Phase 7, Modi in Madhya Pradesh, Rahul in Himachal

Friday marks the last day of campaigning for the 2019 Lok Sabha election, bringing to an end an unusually heated journey which was the national polls this year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will bring his campaign schedule to a close with a final rally scheduled at Madhya Pradesh's Khargone. Congress chief Rahul Gandhi is expected to be in Himachal Pradesh and is scheduled to address a rally at Solan in the morning.

The Madhya Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer is expected to submit a factual report to the Election Commission on Friday on Pragya Singh Thakur’s remark that Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse was a patriot or 'deshbhakt'.

Under fire for her comment, BJP's Bhopal Lok Sabha seat candidate had tendered an apology on Thursday night and said she respected Mahatma Gandhi as his work for the country cannot be forgotten. She said she made the comments on the spur of moment to a question linked to "saffron terror" and claimed that the media twisted them.

The Kolkata Police has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the vandalism of Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar’s statue at Vidyasagar College in Kolkata on 14 May, during BJP chief Amit Shah's roadshow. The team, headed by North Kolkata Deputy Commissioner Debasish Sarkar, will meet today to examine close to 50 clips of acquired video footage of the incident.

Politics over supporters of which party destroyed the bust played well into Thursday when Mamata reiterated at her rallies that "Bengalis' pride is hurt and they will not spare BJP." Modi, during a rally at Uttar Pradesh's Mau, early on Thursday had promised a grander statue in the same spot, which Mamata at a subsequent rally said she had no use for.

Opposition delegation meets EC over 'bias' in Bengal

A delegation of three Opposition parties met the Election Commission over the poll panel's decision to curtail campaigns in West Bengal and yet allow a 24 hour delay for it. Several Opposition leaders have alleged that the delay in enforcing Article 324 was allegedly to facilitate prime minister Narendra Modi to hold his two scheduled rallies in the state. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who represented the Congress said the team did not receive a satisfactory response from the Election Commission.

In first such action in India's electoral history, the Election Commission on Wednesday invoked Article 324 to curtail the campaigning in nine West Bengal constituencies a day before its scheduled deadline. The development came in the wake of Tuesday's violence between BJP and TMC workers in Kolkata, triggering a sharp response from state chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee.

Repolling to be held at nine booths in south India

The Election Commission of India has declared polls held on 11 April at five polling stations of the Chandragiri Assembly constituency and the Chittoor Parliamentary constituency of Andhra Pradesh void. The five polling stations, along with four booths of Kerala's Kasargod and Kannur constituencies which saw bogus voting according to the poll panel, will go see repolling on Sunday.

Supreme Court to deliver order on Rajeev Kumar's custodial interrogation

The Supreme Court will deliver its order on whether the CBI can question former Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar, in its custody. CBI had moved the apex court to arrest Kumar, alleging that he had withheld information on the Saradha chit fund case.

A team of CBI officers was stopped from entering the residence of Kumar, when he was the city police chief on 3 February when they had gone to question him in connection with the scam cases.

The move had led tchief minister Mamata Banerjee to launch a dharna in the heart of the city, protesting against "the attack on constitutional norms".

Infosys to allocate 5 crore shares to incentivise employees

Infosys said its board has approved an Expanded Stock Ownership Program 2019 that proposes to allocate five crore shares to incentivise employees based on performance. In a regulatory filing, Infosys termed the latest programme "2019 Plan" as "distinct" from previous plan of 2015 where the granted shares largely vested based on time.

"...Whereas under the 2019 Plan, the grants will vest strictly on performance. Accordingly, it is proposed to allocate a maximum limit of five crore shares (about 1.15 per cent of the equity share capital) of the company under the 2019 Plan," it added.

"Our employees are our biggest asset, and through this program we aim to recognise and reward individuals who are committed to driving value creation for all stakeholders... By making employees owners, they get an opportunity to be beneficiaries in the long term success of the company," Salil Parekh, CEO and managing director, said.

Nick Kyrgios disqualified from Italian Open after meltdown

Nick Kyrgios of Australia was disqualified from the Italian Open on Thursday after storming off court during his second round match against Norwegian Casper Ruud. The controversial figure, who had made headlines by criticising other players including Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in an interview on Wednesday, started arguing with the umpire in the third set. He had levelled the match at one set all but was given a game penalty early on in the third set for swearing.

Asus Zenfone 6, company's answer to OnePlus7, launched

ASUS’ counter to the OnePlus 7 has finally made its global debut. The phone packs in a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC and pairs it with up to 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. The cameras include a 48 MP f/1.79 wide and 13 MP ultra-wide units. Specs aside, the most interesting feature of this phone is that it has no selfie camera. Instead, the rear camera flips and doubles as a selfie cam.

Priyanka, Deepika, Kangana reach Cannes

Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Deepika Padukone and Kangana Ranaut have reached the French Riviera, and more actresses will be joining in at the Cannes Film Festival 2019. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor Ahuja, Huma Qureshi, Mallika Sherawat and Diana Penty will also be seen, meanwhile TV actress Hina Khan has already walked the red carpet. Priyanka will be making her debut at Cannes. Kangana will be wearing Falguni and Shane Peacock on the red carpet this year.

Your guide to the latest seat tally, live updates, analysis and list of winners for Lok Sabha Elections 2019 on firstpost.com/elections. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram or like our Instagram or like our Facebook page for updates from all 542 constituencies on counting day of the general elections.